


Advent Calendar 2017: Drakecest Edition

by InkyJustine



Category: Uncharted (Video Games)
Genre: Advent Calendar, Fanart, Ficlet Collection, M/M, Morning Cuddles, Morning Sex, Nudity, Sibling Incest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-01
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2019-02-08 02:07:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 6,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12854448
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InkyJustine/pseuds/InkyJustine
Summary: For my dearest friends and shippers as a Christmas present :)Day 1: Sleep InDay 2: Forehead Kiss





	1. Day 1: Sleep In

**Author's Note:**

  * For [drakecestanon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/drakecestanon/gifts), [sea_sighs](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sea_sighs/gifts).



Nathan blinked his eyes open. The curtains were drawn but nonetheless he could make out that it was daylight outside, sun bright enough to cast their bedroom into twilights. Beside him, Sam stirred and rubbed his nose against Nathan's shoulder.

"What time is it?" Sam asked, blearily, still more than half caught in the land of dreams.

Nathan blinked at him tiredly for a moment, his sleep-muddled brain taking a while to understand the meaning of his words. Then he turned his head to squint at the bedside table and the clock perched on top.

"About seven," he finally said and let his head fall back on his pillow. Sam's mouth found his shoulder, too, leaving a dry kiss from chapped lips before he grunted an acknowledgment.

"Do we have anywhere to be today?" Sam asked eventually. His voice drew Nathan back out of the doze he had fallen into. They hadn't even been to bed late the day before. The only thing they had done was research an old myth, looking to see if there could be some indication that a stunt for some treasure wouldn't be a waste of time before they'd watched a movie. Sam was still catching up on everything he had missed and Nathan was still catching up on Sam.

"No," Nathan replied and yawned, stretched and sank back into the warm embrace of the bed and his brother's presence in it.

Sam stirred. His hands, that had previously been resting between them came up, on of them resting curled against Nathan's side while the other roamed up Nathan's chest and over his side until Sam got a good grip and tugged on him.

Almost reluctantly Nathan rolled over so they were face to face. In all honesty he didn't want to move but there were worse and less endearing things to look at than his big brother sleepily blinking at him in the half-dark.

"What?" Nathan asked, slowly, no doubt looking just as sleepy. His eyes threatened to slip shut all by themselves.

"Nothing, just like looking at you I guess." Sam smiled. Then he leaned in. Nathan watched his eyes slide shut and followed suit as Sam's lips met his in a lingering press. The tip of his brother's tongue touched the seam of his mouth and Nathan welcomed him in. Morning breath wasn't the most pleasant so they kept the kiss shallow, lazy, until they drew apart.

"More sleep?" Nathan suggested, eyes still closed. Sam's forehead briefly rested against his, their breath mingling. Nathan could feel the brush of his hair before he pulled back.

"More sleep," Sam agreed and Nathan let out a noise of protest when Sam pushed at him and got Nathan to roll over so his back was to Sam. "Hush, you can be the big spoon the next time," Sam hummed. Then his arms wrapped around Nathan and Nathan sighed when Sam cuddled up to his back.

Nathan interlaced their hands, pressed them against his chest and it didn't took him long at all to drop back off to sleep, Sam at his back.


	2. Day 2: Forehead Kiss




	3. Day 3: Heat Wave

"Why am I so damn hot?" Nathan cried and tilted his head back against the back of the couch to maximize the amount of skin exposed to the tiny draft coming from the wide open windows. Damn him for not getting air conditioning installed. The ice cream cone was melting in his hand faster than he could eat it.

"Must be your genes," Sam said, equally sweaty beside him, trying to get his ice finished before it was inevitably going to land on his lap. It was good ice cream, which didn’t deserve that kind of fate.

"What?" Nathan asked stupidly. The heat was making his brain slow. Then he let out a laugh and bumped their knees together, nearly making Sam drop his cone and getting sweet stickiness all over his hands.

"Hey, watch it!" Sam called out. Nathan watched, mesmerized, the way he licked his fingers and then watched even more intently when Sam got to his feet to chuck his pants. "Better," Sam sighed as he sank back into the couch cushion. Just like that the view had gotten even better. 

Nathan swallowed. It wasn’t even that he felt like doing anything that would only make them sweat _more_ , but Sam looked so comfortable and almost naked that his belly clenched. 

When Sam spread his legs, Nathan couldn’t help but lean over to kiss him, tasting the sweetness from the ice cream on his brother’s lips.

"Hmm," Sam hummed, "I think it's way too warm to go any further.” With a small chuckle he pulled away and Nathan laughed. 

"I wasn't about to." Quickly Nathan shoved the rest of his ice into his mouth, wincing when that made his head hurt and finished up the last of his waffle. Sadly, it only cooled him down for a moment before he followed Sam's example and took off his pants. This was better. He let out what was a positively sinful sigh.

"The noises you make," Sam whispered, eyes fixed on Nathan with a promise lurking in them, but made no move to take it _further_. For a while they sweated in companionable silence. Then Nathan took off his shirt as well, even if that meant soaking the back of the couch in sweat. For a moment he contemplated taking off his shorts as well. Beside him, Sam followed suit until they were both down to their underwear.

Nathan eyed his brother’s tattoo. At any other temperature, he would have taken the chance to mouth at them, what with neither of them busy and both of them interested, but--

"It's still too damn hot," Nathan complained. They had been outside in the yard before they had collapsed on the couch but if possible it was actually _hotter_ outside than it was inside. Nathan closed his eyes, letting his mind wander as much as his current discomfort allowed.

Then he remembered. 

"Hey I have an inflatable pool!" he called out, face lightening up, and met Sam's questioning look.

"What? Where?"

"Up in my attic," he slapped a hand down on Sam's sweaty knee, before wiping his own hands on his shorts, "come on."

Up to the attic, which turned out to be probably the coolest part of the house, they went and a brief search uncovered the dusty inflatable pool, not at all inflated.

"It's going to take ages to blow that up," Sam pointed out, wiping his face and leaving dirty streaks on his face. One day, Nathan told himself, he would clean up this room; possibly before next summer so they had a better refuge from the heat. Without answering, Nathan dug around a little more. He didn’t feel like inflating the little pool with the power of his lungs either.

"Here," he said when he found what he was looking for and held up the electrical air pump. 

Sam pursed his lips and nodded. "That’ll work." They grinned at each other, bringing their findings downstairs and sweated a little more on the couch, making sure none of their various body parts were touching to minimize the warmth and watched the pool slowly unfold. Nathan couldn’t wait to get some cool water onto himself. The alternative was still to fill a bathtub with cold water, but that meant taking turns and their plumbing had managed to heat up as well so there was only water coming out of the pipes that was lukewarm.

Once the pool was fully blown-up Sam let out a laugh. "We'll never fit in there." A few years ago, Nathan had bought it for a niece of Elena's. The size was evidence for _that_. He tilted his head, looking at the pool critically.

"We'll just take turns." Nathan shrugged, jumping to his feet and grabbing the pool. Out in the yard, the garden hose was placed inside and they waited as it was filled up. It was awfully small, much smaller than in Nathan’s memory.

"Maybe we can both fit after all," Sam suddenly said beside him, sounding thoughtful.

Turned out they could, although it was a tight fit and not many parts of them were actually touching water. Sam let out a sigh and Nathan moaned. Their legs hung outside the pool and Nathan dug his feet into the wet grass, courtesy of the garden hose. Only his ass and parts of his lower back were in the pool but by god it was heavenly. This was so much better than the freaking bathtub or a two hour long shower.

"Now we only need beer," Sam sighed beside him.


	4. Day 4: Taking a bath




	5. Day 5: Make Memories

Needles poked him, but Sam didn't mind. It only _added_ to the Christmas spirits he had suddenly found himself in for the last couple of days. Way more than all the years before, which wasn't hard since prison had to be the least festive of places at the best of times and Nathan's face had been priceless when Sam had chosen the biggest tree that could still, more or less, comfortably fit into their living room.

And now Sam was decorated it. He was _loving_ it, while Nathan had given up a few hours ago, leaving Sam to his own devices.

He took a step back to critically examine his handiwork. Gold and silver baubles made up most of the decoration, with candy canes and other stuff hung in between. It was just this side of tacky, but if Sam had been honest with himself, he quite reveled in it. He had to make up for over a decade worth of Christmas trees missed. Even in their youth they had always found a way to celebrate in small ways at the very least.

On top of that he got to spend it with his little brother, at least the actual evening before Elena and Victor would come visit the next day. The divorce had gone off without too much of a hitch and Sam was glad that Nathan had got to keep Elena as a friend. Guilt still gnawed at him, but it had lessened some after he had had his own heart to heart with her.

"Hey Sam, look at this," Nathan called out from behind him and Sam turned, catching sight of the camera only after Nathan had already pushed the shutter release. The device hummed, releasing the picture and Nathan quickly pulled it out and threw it on the kitchen counter, making another while Sam laughed.

"Let me see," Sam said and stepped up beside his brother.

"We'll have to wait for it to develop," Nathan pointed out and Sam shrugged; waiting was the least of his worries. Then he wrapped an arm around Nathan's shoulder, taking the camera out of Nathan's hand with the other. He felt Nathan's arms snake around his middle as he raised the device up and took a picture that Nathan put to the others. For the next one Sam turned his head, brushing his lips against his brother's temple. By the last one Nathan had raised his head and their lips brushed as the shutter sounded again.


	6. Day 6: Nude Kissing




	7. Day 7: Boat

Nathan steered their boat towards one of the many islands littered around Madagascar. It was a beautiful place; the sun shone down on them and after more than a decade his brother was back by his side, but he couldn't quite enjoy it no matter how much he tried. In the last few hours the joy at Sam’s return was overlaid by regret.

 _He had lied to Elena again._ And it had come to bite him in the ass. If only he had listened to Sully. He should have seen it coming. Everything he had feared… had come true and Sully was angry at him as well. 

At least his brother was back in his life. It was the only small light of relief he had left. 

Nathan looked over his shoulder to where Sam was sitting at the back of the boat, looking out over the ocean behind them. Dolphins were jumping out of the water, following their wake for a little while. A smile was on Sam’s face at their sight; Nathan could see it when Sam turned his head to watch them. He had missed him so much in the past years; even when he had buried the memories deep down it had never stopped hurting.

His presence soothed the pain of things turning bad with Elena, a little. He shouldn't have lied to her, should have had more faith in _them_ , but now it was too late. Too late in more than one way. Having Sam _gone_ had made it possible for him to bury his feelings where they couldn't be seen anymore; had made it possible to move on. 

Sam's return had only rekindled the old flame.

_What was he doing?_

Nathan shook his head to get rid of the depressing thoughts. How high was the chance that he could keep them both anyway? He couldn't go back to how things were, neither his marriage to Elena or his relationship with Sam. A memory of the kisses they had shared crept back into the forefront of his mind and replayed as Sam caught his eye across the length of the boat.

They had fallen into bed together, too, so long ago. And now they had time again. 

Nathan turned off the engine. 

Something must have been in his eyes when he crossed the deck, because Sam got up and met him in the middle, hand reaching out before falling back to his side before they could touch Nathan.

"Are you alright?" Sam asked, worry clear in his face. Guilt was there, too.

"I missed you," Nathan said, it was true enough.

A smile stole over Sam's face. "I missed you, too," he answered and then his hands did cross the distance between them, followed by half a step that Nathan wasn't sure _who_ did. Sam leaned in and their lips met and Nathan realized that nothing could ever be the same again.


	8. Day 8: Holding Hands




	9. Day 9: Dress up

Nathan fiddled with his tie. For the first time in forever he was beyond nervous. _Anxious_ The tie felt too tight, cutting off his oxygen and on top of that it was probably crooked. It felt crooked... _was it crooked?!_

"Stop that," Sam said beside him and turned around, gently tearing Nathan's hand from around his throat and fixing the tie. His palms stroking down Nathan's chest, smoothing out the wrinkles. It was funny; they hadn't seen each other in so long but still Sam's touch calmed him down in no time, easing the anxiety inside of him. 

"Just nervous," Nathan muttered and swallowed. Sam raised his head. The kiss that followed took away some of the edge. It wasn't that Nathan wasn't looking forward to it, but...

"You don't have to be. We've been out before," Sam told him before leaning in again. His lips were soft over Nathan's and he let himself fall into the touch, opened his mouth to let Sam tease a tongue against his. Nathan's heart was doing somersaults in his chest.

"Yeah, but, not like this," Nathan pointed and intertwined his fingers with Sam's. 'This' meant 'as a couple', of course they had been out eating, watched a movie and all that jazz, but they had never tried to kiss or hold hands where other people could see them and now Sam wanted to whisk him away on a romantic evening. 

_Sam_! 

Nathan could have sworn his brother didn't have a romantic bone in his body.

"We can stay here if you want," Sam said, looking away, "get take-out and fuck on the couch."

Nathan let out a laugh. "So like always? No, a romantic dinner sounds good," he assured him and leaned in to kiss him again.


	10. Day 10: Arm around shoulder




	11. Day 11: How could I forget about you

Elena was working on one of her articles when she heard the doorbell ring. 

For a moment she waited if her husband was going to get the door, but of course he didn't. Most likely he had holed up again in the attic, pouring over job offers Jameson had given him. One of these days, they would have to talk about that, among other things. It felt as if Nate was slipping away from her, as if they were drifting apart again. 

Her belly tensed at the thought. That was the last thing she wanted. 

Again the doorbell rang and Elena got to her feet with a huff. 

"I'm coming, I'm coming," she sighed, "I live alone here, don't you know." She shook her head with a fond smile and went to get the door before whoever was on the other side decided to ring a third time. It was rather late for visitors. 

She hoped it didn't mean trouble. 

The man who stood on the other side of the door _looked_ like trouble. Handsome trouble, but trouble nonetheless. There was something in the way he grinned that set her on edge despite the awkward note to it. 

"Hey, I'm-ah looking for Nathan Drake. Is he in?" The man asked. His hands hung loose at his side. One of them held a cigarette between his first two fingers. 

Casual. 

Open. 

Deliberately so. 

Elena nodded, body tense. There were tattoos on the side of his neck of birds in flight. "Sure, I'll get him," she said, feeling that asking for his name would only get her a lie in response. He met her gaze steadily when she, without turning around, called upstairs: "Hey Nate, someone at the door for you!" 

"I'm coming," Nate called down and then the sound of footsteps was heard as he made his way down the ladder from the attic and down the stairs. Elena finally looked over her shoulder at him when she heard his steps falter. 

The expression on his face... 

She had never seen her husband looking that _shocked_ , as if the world had been tilted on its axis and he was losing the ground underneath his feet. 

"Sam?" Nate's voice was choked and Elena's belly clenched in worry. Definite trouble. She was about ready to throw the man out again if he made Nate this upset, but there was disbelief in his face and Elena turned around to see the stranger smile, not charming like before but soft and reassuring as if to say 'Everything is going to be alright now'.

_Who was this guy?_

"Hey Nathan," the stranger, _Sam_ , said. "Did you forget about me?" The words had a snide edge. There was history there and Elena stepped out of the way when Nate walked down the stairs and right past her to wrap Sam into a bear hug. 

"How could I ever forget about you?" Nate laughed, only half happy, other half devastated; he sounded about ready to cry. Elena was frozen to the spot, as if time was standing still. They didn't let go of each other; Sam hugged back just as hard, burying his face into her husband's neck. 

They almost looked like they could have been a couple, back in the day. Elena hoped it wasn't so. It already looked as if Nate had a lot to explain. 

Again. 

When it didn't look as if they were going to move from their place in the middle of the open door, Elena gently steered them into the living room, away from any possible prying eyes. She closed the front door and locked it. 

Once they were seated, Nate finally looked up at her. There were _tears_ shining in his eyes and again her belly twisted in worry. 

"Elena? This is Sam, my brother." 

Elena couldn't help but do a double-take. Before she had a chance to say anything, Nate turned to the man beside him. They were holding hands, Elena noticed, or rather Nate did his best to crush Sam's hand. "Sam, this is Elena, my wife," he introduced her and Elena smiled when Sam looked at her in surprise as well. At least she wasn't the only one caught off-guard. 

"You've always had good taste," Sam said and turned to Elena he said, "nice to meet you." A born charmer, Elena could tell by the smile he brought to his lips. 

"You as well," Elena returned, wary and confused beyond imagine. What the hell was going on? But Nate looked in no state to tell her and when Sam asked about the last few years, turning back to his brother as if he was the most important thing in the world, and Nate started telling him all about the adventures they had gone on, Elena left them to it.

Nate had a lot to explain, later. That much was clear.


	12. Day 12: Resting Foreheads Together




	13. Day 13: Fresh Dirt

It was raining.

 _How fitting_ , Nathan thought. How fitting it was going to rain on Sam's funeral day, as if the sky itself was mourning his brother’s passing; just like Nathan did.

Sully, Rafe and Harry had left. Was it an hour ago? Nathan wasn't sure and his limbs were too heavy to raise, to look at his watch. Each of them had asked him to come with him, Harry to party, Rafe to bring Nathan to the hotel in his sleek and expensive car. Sully had asked him the longest, worry in his voice, as if Nathan would piss on his brother's legacy by joining him.

Sam's face played over and over in his mind, the blood red on his lips as he had choked on it, the life seeping out of his expression, his eyes, relief turning to surprise. Falling, falling.

Now Nathan just wanted to stay right here, in the rain where he could pretend he hadn't cried for the last hours, days. Strength left him and Nathan sank to his knees. He dug his fingers into the fresh dirt.

Below him was the coffin Rafe had paid for, missing a body. Empty, because Nathan couldn't bear to part with any of Sam's thing.

His brother was falling over and over in his mind and his tears were washed away by the rain, sobs drowned out by the thunder.


	14. Day 14: Holiday Sweaters




	15. Day 15: Amnesia

A bar somewhere in Panama; Nathan fresh from a job that hadn't gone tits up for once. 

Alright, he wasn't _that_ unlucky. Not always at least. A quiet night drinking was what he wanted right now, needed it, to unwind even if he hated being in the same damn _country_ his brother died in. It was going to do him good, a drink to chase away the chill and celebrate a job done well. Nathan looked up, thinking about what to order, but instead he froze with one foot over the threshold.

At the bar, right in front of the bartender sat a familiar looking face, turned to the side as his eyes roamed over the room. The hair was the same. 

It couldn't be.

Absolutely impossible.

_No._

Nathan swallowed around the lump in his throat. His mind was playing tricks on him. It had to be. In no reality was it possible that Sam had survived. There was a stranger sitting at the bar.

Another patron jostled him from behind, forcing Nathan to take a few more steps into the room and he mumbled out an apology. It had brought him a little closer to the apparition, the impostor. Some guy who looked exactly like his brother.

Another few steps, done almost against his will, brought Nathan to the man's side. 

Up close he could now see that there was a scar at his temple, birds taking flight on his neck. The man took that moment to turn his head in Nathan's direction and smiled, but it was a stranger's curious smile, devoid of recognition.

"Sam?" Nathan couldn't help the way his voice shook around the words.

Sam tilted his head, smile turning self-deprecating on his face. "You know me? I'm sorry, your name must have slipped my mind."

"It's me, Nathan," Nathan said and sat down on the barstool beside his brother, lest he draw more attention to him and before his legs could give out from under him. The world was spinning.

Sam signaled the bartender, mouthing 'on me' when he put a beer down beside Nathan. For a long moment Nathan's throat was so tight and dry he couldn't press words past his lips; Sam was silent as well, mapping Nathan's face with his eyes; searching for something... to recognize?

Nathan's chest hurt. God, did it hurt to see Sam again. God, did it hurt for him to be a stranger to his brother.

"So," the words was drawn out and Sam pursed his lips and took a sip before continuing, "where do I know you from?"

"I'm your brother," Nathan said, discarding the lie that briefly crossed his mind at the memory of kisses they had shared. Maybe if he had less scruples, he would have pretended they were past lovers and nothing else.

Sam tilted his head to the other side, regret on his face. "Shame I would have asked you out for a drink and more." He winked and Nathan laughed, lost for words. If only Sam could still _remember_ the more they had done, the way they knew each other more intimately than siblings should.

In silence they shared their drinks, digesting the new information. In Nathan's case he didn't even know where to start. He just wanted to grab his brother and _go_ , leave this country behind and bring Sam home where he belonged.

"If we really are brothers," Sam began with a wistful look on his face, "what happened?"

Nathan wondered if he knew about prison, but he had to. Why was he out? Had they just let him go? Questions and more questions and each of them inappropriate to ask in a public space like this.

"It's-- kind of a long story." Nathan dragged his bottom lip between his teeth and caught Sam glancing down. "Do you want to get out of here? I have a room in a nearby hotel."

Sam looked taken aback, but just for a moment. Nathan's brother had always been quick to land on his feet when taken off-guard. "Probably a bad idea to follow a stranger back to his place," he mused and chucked the last of his drink. "Lead the way."

Out they went and the next corner over Nathan stopped and Sam followed his lead, a puzzled expression on his face that turned even more befuddled when Nathan took a deep breath before stepping in close and hugging him.

It was probably out of line, except it wasn't, because this was Sam and he was _alive_ , something that Nathan hadn't thought possible all these years. He had mourned for him and now here he was. 

Nathan shakily breathed in and halfway in it turned into a sob when Sam tentatively returned the gesture.


	16. Day 16: One Big Scarf




	17. Day 17: Bad dream again

The bed was empty when Nathan woke up. It was cold, too, he found when he slid his hand over it, muzzily trying to determine where Sam had gone to at this time of night.

Just for a moment the irrational fear that he had only imagined Sam's return flashed through his mind. It was stupid of course. You didn't just imagine stuff like that. Or maybe his brother had left, but that was unrealistic as well. For the last few weeks, they had been pretty much joined at the hip.

Which was probably the problem right there.

Nathan rolled to his feet. Now that he was awake he couldn't just fall asleep until he had satisfied his curiosity of where his brother had left to.

The stairs creaked a little when he moved down the steps. Light was flickering in the living room so he didn't bother looking anywhere else. He could _hear_ the television, even though it was turned way down. 

So his brother hadn't wanted to wake him up. 

Touching.

Nathan rubbed his eyes and stepped into the room. Sam was slouched on the couch. Dark rings were under his eyes, but maybe it was only the light from the screen that threw eerie shadows on his face.

"Hey," Nathan whispered when Sam didn't look at him and was graced with the view of seeing his brother jump.

"Jesus, Nathan," Sam said, head whipping around, "you startled me."

Nathan let out a small laugh. "Sorry." He flopped down on the couch and immediately sank against Sam's side. His brother looked stressed, a little upset but only for a moment before a smile slid over Sam's face. He had always been good with his masks and deflecting away from himself.

Just like he did now. 

Nathan hadn't even asked him yet what was wrong. He could imagine though. It wasn’t the first time he had woken up to an empty bed.

"Go back to bed, no point in both of us being awake," Sam said, but his hands carded through Nathan's hair, just like when he had done in the past. When they had been younger. Nathan leaned into the touch.

"What's wrong?" Nathan asked instead of getting up. Getting petted was too nice and the couch was comfortable, just like Sam's shoulder.

Sam shifted against him. "Just had a bad dream again. I don't want to talk about it." Sam's eyes were fixed on the screen, but he took his hand out of Nathan's hair to lay his arm around his shoulder.

Nathan nestled more comfortably against his side. His eyes slid shut.

"Alright," he murmured.


	18. Day 18: Jawline Kiss




	19. 19: Cuddling for warmth

Sam was shivering, badly. 

Normally, he had more of a happy-go-lucky mentality, but today he had had the worst of luck; although not worse than prison, but close, if you asked Sam. Fortuna was proving to be an asshole today. Nathan's arms were around him, dragging him forward on stubborn legs that weren't quite under Sam's control.

Thing was, they had seen a nice ruin not too far away from the place they had rented, nice cozy cabin right at the shore of a lake, romantic getaway. And then ice had broken underneath their feet when they had tried to cross the frozen water, not quite as thoroughly frozen as they had assumed with all the snow lying inches deep _everywhere_. More specifically, the ice had broken under _Sam's_ feet. Nathan, warned by his shout, had managed to jump to safety early enough while Sam had sank down, icy cold water closing over his head almost too fast for him to scream, but he had gotten out. Probably by sheer dumb luck, the same sheer dumb luck that had alerted Rafe of all people to his status as a living person instead of a corpse. 

At least he was _still alive_ , even if now he was shivering so hard he felt like his teeth were about to get knocked out of his head. Nathan swore into his ear. "We're lucky our cabin is so close." His voice was trembling, too. Weird. He hadn't taken a bath in freezing water. Sam shook his head, or tried to at least. It felt like he was already frozen stiff. 

Up ahead, the single window they had left illuminated beckoned to them. Right at the lake the cabin stood, surrounded by snow and pine trees. It looked pretty nice, warm and cozy. They should have just stayed and fucked in front of the fireplace like Nathan had so jokingly offered. In fact Sam would have liked to jump into a fire; burning to death seemed like a more pleasant alternative to go. He couldn't feel his hands. The trip they had planned had only meant to be short, although not quite as short as it had turned out now; cut a few corners and save some time. On the other side of the lake, somewhere in the forest were supposed to be some ruins.

They would have to go there some other time. When Sam wasn't in danger of certain death. Where were the goons with guns if you needed them?

"That would only make it worse," Nathan said and Sam realized he had stuttered out the last thought aloud. A bullet to the head seemed preferable. Sam didn't feel as if he could move, but Nathan pushed him, kept him going forward until they all but fell through the cabin door.

Then a haze of confusion fell over Sam when Nathan started pulling on his clothes. There wasn't even any fire in the fireplace, even if the rug in front of it looked vaguely inviting. Sam felt like laying down.

"Come on, get out of your wet clothes. Help me, Sam." The urgency in Nathan's voice kicked Sam into motion and he stiffly raised his arms so Nathan could pull his shirt up and off; the fabric creaked. His jacket was already lying in a wet heap by the door. Sam nearly fell over, trying to kick off his shoes, while Nathan fumbled with Sam's belt. Sam would have joked about how eager Nathan was to get into his pants, but his teeth were chattering too much.

The wall kept him upright when Nathan knelt and tore at his shoes, making Sam cry out in pain. 

"Sorry, sorry," Nathan whispered and got up, shoes a pile in a corner. Once Sam was fully naked and even more cold than before, if that was even possible, Nathan pushed him down the corridor, into the bedroom and into the bed, but not before rubbing him down with a towel. Sam hissed again at the rough treatment, feeling as if his skin was being scraped off by the fabric, but Nathan didn't apologize this time. Instead, Sam was shoved underneath the duvet.  
Sam opened his eyes, not sure when he had closed them. Beside the bed, Nathan turned up the heaters and stripped down until he was naked. Sam saw him tremble in the still chilly air. 

Sam shivered, at some point he had stopped. "C-come- h-here," Sam stuttered and Nathan wasted no time climbing under the blanket with him.

"Sam you're ice cold!" Nathan said, worry clear in his voice.

"Y-yeah, w-well, t-t-here w-a-as a-a l-lake a-nd I-I h-had t-to g-go f-for- a s-swim." Sam grinned. Predictably, Nathan rolled his eyes. Exasperation was better than worry in Sam's book.

"Just don't die on me, Sam," Nathan whispered, wrapping his arms around Sam, pulling their bodies flush together. Sam closed his eyes and felt Nathan's lips brush against his temple.


	20. Day 20: Sleeping in Bed




	21. Day 21: Sink or Swim

The fucking bridge had crumbled under their feet. 

In its defense, it was quite the old structure and it had already declared that intent by looking the part. It had _creaked_ horribly. Still, Nathan had had just enough time to hear Sam shout out a warning behind him, but it was too late. They had already been halfway across the brittle wood, the river far below, and there was no time to turn back.

At least the fall had been brief and water had gotten into Nathan's mouth when the river had rushed over his head, lips parted around a scream. After that, he only concentrated on survival, on getting his head up over the surface to catch a mouthful of air before the current dragged on him once more, threatening to pull him under. 

He had lost track of Sam.

"Sam?" he called out the moment his feet found steady ground again, coughing out the muddy river as he dragged himself ashore.

"Sam where are you?" The question wasn't met with an answer and Nathan looked for a dark spot among the whirls and twists of the water, bobbing up and sinking again. Then a noise caught his attention, violent retching farther up from his spot on the riverbank.

"Sam!" This time relief and he stumbled to his feet when he saw Sam crawled up the shore a few dozen feet away. He was still coughing when he reached his side.

"Fuck that bridge," Sam panted as Nathan collapsed beside him. Water was lapping at their shoes non-threateningly.

"Yeah," Nathan agreed. Despite himself, a big grin had found its way onto his face and upon seeing it, Sam dragged him closer by the back of his neck, pressing their foreheads again. Being together and alive was all that mattered. Relief still coursing through his veins Nathan tilted his head and brushed their lips together, grinning even harder when Sam deepened the kiss a beat later.


	22. Day 22: Kissing




	23. Day 23: Night Sex

It was still dark out when Sam woke up, still tired, but with his cock straining against his belly, caught between himself and Nathan's body. After they had finished making love to each other last night, they had curled up together. 

Sleepily, he glanced at the clock. 

His head sank back against the pillow and he sighed, eyes fluttering. There was something like a pulsing in his groin. He shifted and hissed, cock hard to ignore with how swollen it was. Then he nuzzled the side of Nathan's head, hair tickling his nose and he tightened the arms he had wrapped around him and drew a barely audible sigh out of his brother. It was too early in the morning. He wasn't thinking when he started undulating his hips against the small of Nathan's back, just seeking friction against the next best thing laying against him and giving enough resistance to build it up.

Again, Nathan let out a soft noise and turned in his arms, seeking his mouth in a sleepy kiss born out of instinct instead of being awake and ready to go again. Sam kissed back for the same reason, only barely awake and mindless with sleep.

"Come on," Nathan murmured against his lips and threw a thigh over Sam's waist, rocking against him. Last night, Sam had fucked him and now it was the most natural thing in the world to thrust between Nathan's legs again, not really aiming but more slip-sliding against his hole until he finally mustered up enough wakefulness to get a hand between their bodies and _aim_. 

Nathan was still slicked from their romp before, not as wet as when they had been done, but loose enough that Sam could sink inside and hear Nathan moan into his ear. 

He took his time. They were no places he'd rather be than in bed with Nathan.

Lazily, he moved his hips, almost ready to fall back asleep with his cock buried in his little brother. Nathan’s fingers dug into his back and relaxed again, nuzzling his cheek. Sam pressed a kiss against his jaw, before he nosed at Nathan until he turned his head and their panting mouths found each other. It wasn't so much kissing that they were doing, for that they were lacking the coordination, half-asleep as they were, but they mouthed at each other until they came with choked little noises.

Sam felt his cock slip out of Nathan and had enough presence of mind to tuck himself back in while Nathan exhaled against his shoulder, rubbing his nose against Sam’s skin.

Then Nathan hummed and Sam felt his hands push at him, until Sam turned around with a complaining noise and he was with his back to Nathan; his little brother’s arms came up around him, spooning against him. Like this, they fell back asleep.


	24. Day 24: Sitting on the counter

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. Please leave a kudos if you enjoyed the writing. :)


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